


Which is the Fool?

by Raven_Ehtar



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, Family Fluff, Gen, Undercourt, Wordcount: 100-1.000, this au never really went anywhere
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-15 14:09:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15414693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven_Ehtar/pseuds/Raven_Ehtar
Summary: Papyrus overhears some of the Royal Hounds speaking about him and his brother and is confused how anyone could possibly confuse him and Sans for each other. After all, they look nothing alike. Other than the bone thing.





	Which is the Fool?

“BROTHER, DO YOU THINK WE LOOK VERY MUCH ALIKE?”

Sans looked up from his book. It was one he was writing himself, a collection of the hilarious jokes he had heard or invented himself, each quip lovingly penned by skeletal hand… But for some reason a lot of the spark was going out of them when they were put to parchment. 

Papyrus was standing not too far off, a piece of his battle body armor in his hands, looking more concerned than the question he had asked ought to have justified. 

“sure, pap. we are brothers, after all. bound to be some family resemblance in the bone structure.”

It was a weak jab at humor, but Papyrus didn’t even scowl at it. He fidgeted instead with the spaulder in his hands. “NO, MORE THAN THAT, SANS. DO YOU THINK THAT… I LOOK LIKE YOU AND YOU LOOK LIKE ME?”

Sans frowned - or rather, his brows pulled together. He put down his quill. 

It was hard to mistake the two of them for anything _other_ than brothers. After all, skeletons weren’t a particularly common race anymore, so it was natural to draw the conclusion that two living in the same town, in the same house, would be related. That being as it may, Sans and Papyrus were almost impossible to mistake for one another. Papyrus was nearly twice Sans’ height and scrawny as… well, a skeleton, where Sans was much rounder than would be expected for one made entirely of bones. Papyrus was more angular in general, but especially in his face, and there was no mistaking one of them for the other with how they chose to dress. Papyrus was determined to become one of the Royal Knights and dressed accordingly, whereas Sans…

Well. 

“i look like you, and you look like me, we look like each other and like how we look. why do you ask?”

“OH. IT’S JUST SOMETHING I OVERHEARD THE HOUNDS SAYING.” The spaulder in Papyrus’ mittened hands spun a little faster. “I WAS PRACTICING MY DEADLY ACCURACY ON SOME UNSUSPECTING TREE TRUNKS, BEING VERY CAREFUL ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF MAGIC I WAS USING, LIKE YOU SHOWED ME, SANS. I WAS DOING WELL, HITTING EVERY ONE WITHOUT CAUSING DAMAGE. IT WOULDN’T DO TO ACTUALLY HARM ANY HUMANS THAT COME, YOU KNOW.”

“just disarm them, bro.”

Papyrus sighed, and then continued. “A COUPLE OF THE HOUNDS WERE OBSERVING MY SPECTACULAR PERFORMANCE, AND I BELIEVE DISCUSSING MY PLANS TO BECOME A KNIGHT ONCE I CAPTURE A HUMAN. THAT WAS WHEN I HEARD ONE OF THEM SAY… THAT THEY SOMETIMES COULDN’T TELL WHICH OF US WAS THE KING’S FOOL AND WHICH WAS NOT.”

Sans stiffened. It took a conscious effort to keep breathing normally and not to ball his hand into a fist. “pap--“

“IT CONFOUNDED ME, I MUST ADMIT,” he went on blithely. “HOW ANYONE COULD CONFUSE US WHEN I AM SO MUCH HANDSOMER, AND DO NOT GO ABOUT IN AN OLD HOOD.”

“uh…”

“I ONLY WORRIED BECAUSE I THOUGHT MAYBE I WAS BEGINNING TO SLACK. TURN INTO A LAZYBONES. DO _YOU_ THINK I’M TURNING INTO A LAZYBONES, SANS? OUGHT I TO TRY EVEN HARDER?”

Skeletons were not usually capable of much expression, but Sans’ smile widened slightly. “nah, bro. i don’t think the underground could handle you any more amazing than you already are.” He shrugged. “besides, it was probably that hound doggo talking, right? you know he’s mostly blind. i wouldn’t read too much into what he says.”

For a moment Papyrus still looked doubtful, the spaulder shifting from hand to hand, but then brightened up considerably. “OF COURSE YOU’RE RIGHT, BROTHER. ALTHOUGH IF IT’S BECAUSE OF DOGGO’S POOR EYESIGHT THAT HE HAS SUCH DIFFICULTY, THEN I _SHOULD_ TRAIN EVEN HARDER SO HE CAN SEE ME BETTER! YOU KNOW HE SEES BETTER WHEN WHAT HE’S LOOKING AT IS MOVING!”

“that’s the spirit, pap. just don’t impress them too much.”

“WHYEVER NOT?”

“because then they’ll hound you to train them.”

“SANS!”

Sans chuckled, but more from relief than amusement at his brother’s disgusted exclamation. Papyrus’ endlessly sunny demeanor was practically an entity unto itself, and this was not the first time that an insult - or just a comment that could be considered an insult - totally failed to have an effect on him. Sans was glad of that. The idea that someone would even try was enough to make the magic start to crackle along his joints. 

And even a distant chance that an insult might actually succeed in penetrating his sunny self…

Maybe he’d pay a visit to Grillby’s Tavern later on. The Hounds liked to spend their evenings there for a warm bite and a scratch before going to their respective homes, and it had been a while since he’d chatted with any of them. 

Maybe it was time for a little _chat._ Just to remind everyone who the real joker was around Snowdin.

**Author's Note:**

> This was something I kinda came up with when I was still way deep in the Undertale fandom and the thing all the kids were doing was coming up with different AUs. I didn’t go out of my way to try and come up with one, but I got a germ of an idea which I started calling ‘Undercourt,’ which was basically a medieval/middle ages AU. This tiny short and a playlist for me to listen to were all that resulted from it. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


End file.
